Improvement in clasps foe hoop-skiets



ABEL J. CROSS, OF G'REENPOBT, NEW YORK.

Letters Patent No. 79,210, dated June 23', 1868.

IMPROVEMENT IN GLASPS FOR HOOP-SKIRTS.

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TO ALL WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:

Be it known that I, ABEL J. CROSS, of Greenport, in the county of Suii'olk, and State of New York, have invented and made a. certain new and useful Improvement in Clasps for Skeleton-Skirts; andI dohereby declare the following to bc a full, clear, and exact description ofthe said-invention, reference being had to the annexed drawing, making partei' this specication, wherein- Figure 1 is a view representing the usual skirt-clasp, and

Figure 2 shows the sheet of metal from which it is cut.

Figure 3 shows my improved clasp as cut out from a piece ot' sheet metal. K

Figure 4 is a plan and side view of the clasp bent uprfor use, and

Figure i5 is a plan of the pecc of metal from which my clasp is cut.

Heretofore it has been usual to cut ont the sheet-metal clasp for skeleton-skirtsin the form shown in tig. 1. .This involves a loss in sheet-metal scrap ot' about the same weight as the clasps produced, and sometimes the scrap exceeds the clasps in weight quite considerably. p

My'invention relates to a clasp for uniting the tapes to the hoops, said clasp being formed with a series of penetrating points, with straight or nearly straight sides, and the points on one side coming opposite the correspondingly-shaped openings on the other side, so that the clasp is formed withlittleor no Waste of' metal, and is of a character to pass through the tapes and hold them to the hoops in the most reliable manner, and the clasp itself is a series of zigzag metallic bars, extending from the penetrating points on one side to the penetrating points on the other side, and when the clasp is bent around the hoop, it presents the appearance of diagonal bars, alternating in opposite directions, and holding the tape somewhat similarly to stitches on alternate opposite edges of the hoop, and hence the clasp is not so likely to cut the tape as when `a straight clasp is used, running in the direction of the weft-threads of'said tapes, instead ot' diagonally to both warp `and weftthreads, asin my clasp.

In figs. 4 and 5 my improved clasp is shown complete ready for use; in iig. 3 the same is shown in the ilat form in which it is cut from the sheet of metal.

My improved clasp is formed asa series of zigzags, producing ,points alternately on opposite sides, the angles between which furnish the points for the contiguous clasps.

I make use of a zigzag shear or cutter, of a shape corresponding to the red line in fig. 5l This is to be rcciprocated by suitablemeans, and the strip of material, a, is fed along between cach reciprocation of the cutter a. space sufficient to furnish the metal for' one clasp, and that clasp may thus be cut of a greater or less width, adapted to different widths of hoops, by simply varying the amount of feed to the sheet of metal, thus dispensing with the diti'er'ent dies heretofore required for making the various sizes'of the clasps.

There will not be any loss of sheet metalexcept at the ends of the strip.

Clasps lmade as aforesaid are superior in use, because the tape is held at alternate points at the opposite sides of theehoop, and the clasp itself is lighter than those made in the usual modo, and hence the whole skirt will be more durable and of less weight.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

A clasp for uniting the tapes to the hoops in skeleton-skirts, the same being formed of a series of alternate diagonal metallic bars, extending from the penetrating points on one side to the penetrating points on the other side ofthe clasp, as specified. i

In Witness whereof, I have hereunto set my signature, this eleventh day of February, 1868.-

' ABEL J. CROSS.

Witnesses:

CuAs.`H. Saura, GEO. D. WALKER. 

